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  #11  
Old 10-27-2007, 05:41 PM
Blarg Blarg is offline
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Default Re: Do you think dogs get lonely?

You'd have to put extra effort into keeping that area really clean and odor-free, and that's the first thing dogs get dirty besides their feet. That's a sensitive area to groom too.

On the other hand, this dog looks like one of the few animals that could give a liger a run for his money in a magic contest.
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  #12  
Old 10-27-2007, 06:43 PM
katyseagull katyseagull is offline
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Default Re: Do you think dogs get lonely?

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Note that that also means that going on trips can be more costly and burdensome. You have to ask friends to take care of the dog -- which many may do quite poorly -- or board them at a kennel, perhaps adding a couple hundred dollars to the effective cost of your trip. Do you want to do that? It's a pretty real problem.

Regarding a crate, crate training your dog is fine, but leaving him in there for 8 or 9 or 10 hours a day is excessive. Let him stretch his legs a bit and walk around your place. There's no harm in it. Crates for anything but small dogs take up quite a bit of room too.

Another thing -- one dog can keep another company.

Also, agreed with another poster that puppies need, and should get, a ton of attention. It's very important to their socialization.

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Thanks for your reply Blarg. Do you own a dog right now? If you did would you crate him or leave him wander around your house? I think I'd just let my dog have the run of the house probably.

Like I said earlier, I'm leaning away from getting a puppy. I even emailed one of those rescue places in Ohio and inquired about a 7 yr old airedale. I wouldn't mind having an old man. Found out that the dog had just been placed in a home. Bummer [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]. I just want a cool looking dog who is slightly older.

I doubt I could qualify for one of those rescue group dogs anyway. I don't have a fenced yard. [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img] I'm pretty unimpressive on paper.
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  #13  
Old 10-27-2007, 06:49 PM
Dominic Dominic is offline
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Default Re: Do you think dogs get lonely?

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1. If you get a dog, adopt one from a shelter or pound. Lots of unwanted dogs. That's where I got mine!

2. Of course dogs get lonely and bored. I think it's because they have no concept of time...so it really doesn't matter if you're gone for for five minutes or 10 hours - to them you're gone FOREVER!

That's why they're so happy when u return. [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

3. Crate training is fine...dogs are den animals and love to be underneath/in something...

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Thanks for everyone's comments.

1. I might go this route. I don't think I can handle a puppy even though I love them so much. I think I'm looking for a more mature dog. Someone who has the bathroom thing down. But I want one that looks cool. Like the fellow in the picture.

2. Dom, what do you do with your dog when you're gone. Does he just hang out on your couch all day?

3. Is crate training only for the early stages and eventually you throw away the crate?

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I got Sammy when he was two and he was already housebroken. When I had a regular job it was close by so I'd come home at lunch and take him for quick walk. Otherwise, he'd either hang out in the house or outside in the back yard.

I don't know much about crate training so I'm not the one to ask. I just know what a friend who did it told me!
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  #14  
Old 10-27-2007, 07:04 PM
Ser William Ser William is offline
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Default Re: Do you think dogs get lonely?

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Another thing -- one dog can keep another company.

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My wife and I had a Shih Tzu pup for 3 months before getting another - we both are away from home 10+ hours a day so we felt bad just leaving the one home alone.

Having said that, I've worked from home plenty of times, and I can tell you that all they do all day is sleep. I wouldn't be too worried that they are lonely without you, chances are they are dreaming doggie dreams all day.
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  #15  
Old 10-27-2007, 07:04 PM
Blarg Blarg is offline
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Default Re: Do you think dogs get lonely?

I don't own a dog right now, but when I grew up we owned a kennel, a quarantine, and a pet shop, and my mom bred dogs too, but casually, not like a volume business or anything.

Now she's really into obedience and agility trials for dogs. She's done it with germa shepherds and got an incredibly adorable and beautiful australian shepherd she's training in it now. Exceptionally smart dog, with an incredibly perky, happy personality. Too energetic by far for most people or for apartment living, though.

The extent to how much I'd let a dog wander the house would vary dog by dog. Some dogs are really happy in their crate, and if you have a small dog, it's not that much of a burden. And even those usually spend their time outside them, if a person is around at least. But a crate ample enough for a big dog is pretty large, and seems unfair to me. I mean, I can't hold my pee for 8 or 10 hours, and wouldn't want to lie in my own pee for 4 hours either. I'd rather they peed on the floor.

My folks got these expanding gates, and the dogs got used to staying behind them, even if they could leap over them. As one of them aged, his bladder started to go, so they put him in the kitchen/breakfast nook area, which was tiled and could be easily cleaned. Their little dog they crate sometimes, but that's to a great extent for habituation, as they take him to agility trials, and he has to get used to being in the crate for hours of travel time. It doesn't seem necessary for dogs not subject to frequent long travel like that.

If I had an adult dog that peed all over, I'd probably take him to a doctor, then a trainer, and still wind up locking him in a bathroom or the kitchen or something as a worst-case scenario. I know dogs like dens, but they also love the cool, cool tile on a warm day, too, and the chance to lay in the sun or opt out of it at will.
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  #16  
Old 10-27-2007, 07:06 PM
Blarg Blarg is offline
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Default Re: Do you think dogs get lonely?

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Another thing -- one dog can keep another company.

[/ QUOTE ]

My wife and I had a Shih Tzu pup for 3 months before getting another - we both are away from home 10+ hours a day so we felt bad just leaving the one home alone.

Having said that, I've worked from home plenty of times, and I can tell you that all they do all day is sleep. I wouldn't be too worried that they are lonely without you, chances are they are dreaming doggie dreams all day.

[/ QUOTE ]

Some of them howl mournfully for 8 hours straight. I'm pretty sure they are lonely. It's different, when you're around. Then they're just bored! [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
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  #17  
Old 10-27-2007, 07:08 PM
katyseagull katyseagull is offline
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Default Re: Do you think dogs get lonely?

Thanks Ser William. That makes me feel better to hear someone point out that dogs do in fact sleep a large part of the day. My coworkers are telling me how bad it is to leave a dog alone all day (even though they have done just that with their own dogs [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]).

Are you glad you got the 2nd dog then? Is it easier or more difficult?
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  #18  
Old 10-27-2007, 07:10 PM
katyseagull katyseagull is offline
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Default Re: Do you think dogs get lonely?

[ QUOTE ]


Some of them howl mournfully for 8 hours straight. I'm pretty sure they are lonely. It's different, when you're around. Then they're just bored! [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]

That made me feel a lot worse to read that dogs might howl for 8 hours straight because they are lonely. Darn you Blarg.
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  #19  
Old 10-27-2007, 07:19 PM
Ser William Ser William is offline
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Default Re: Do you think dogs get lonely?

[ QUOTE ]
Thanks Ser William. That makes me feel better to hear someone point out that dogs do in fact sleep a large part of the day. My coworkers are telling me how bad it is to leave a dog alone all day (even though they have done just that with their own dogs [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]).

Are you glad you got the 2nd dog then? Is it easier or more difficult?

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First of all I agree with Blarg in that SOME howl all day... but I think you'll find that to be the minority. I had a friend who lived in the apartment below me who had a dog that was borderline stalkerish when it came to his owner. He whined a little bit when my friend left in the morning but after that he just slept on the bed... by the window, watching all the cars go by hoping that one of them was my friend. So ok, he was lonely, but he did sleep a lot, and no howling!

I am very glad we got a 2nd dog, now. At first it was pretty brutal though, since our first (Maggie) seemed devastated that we would bring an outsider (Daisy) in. She stopped playing with us, she was extremely wary, and on top of it all they both got sick and had to be taken to the vet. It was awful. However, now they'll cuddle up back to back with each other, and while I wouldn't say they are best of friends they do tend to spend time near each other during the day.

The Shih Tzu is a great breed for apartment life. They require little space and small walks are enough exercise to keep them in great shape. I think if you are looking to get a bigger breed of dog you might find that they require a lot more attention and care, so maybe the loneliness factor would be more noticeable there.

Also to answer your question about being easier or more difficult with a 2nd, I don't think I can answer that properly. Mainly because we got them 3 months apart. Emotionally it was tougher that way. But from a training standpoint it made things a lot easier because Daisy would just copy everything Maggie did.

Good luck, don't let your co-workers deter you from getting a dog.
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  #20  
Old 10-27-2007, 07:23 PM
Blarg Blarg is offline
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Default Re: Do you think dogs get lonely?

They even die occasionally when their doggy buddies die. They are very, very much pack animals, not loners.

But I think a good relationship with them while you're home does wonders. The bad thing to do is when you come home, be too lazy to walk them, or keep shoving them out of the way when they come over to lick you or stick their nose on you or whatever. Dogs are a messy business, but so what? They need very, very little compared to what we can give, and compared to all the love they can give, but sometimes even giving a little can feel like a nuisance. A nice owner will not train his dog to be constantly all over him by rewarding him too much, but won't treat him like a cardboard box stuffed into an empty corner either. That "hangdog" expression when you've rejected them sure is a miserable guilt-inducer!

I'm sure you could make a dog happy even if you have a working life like everyone else does, Katy. It's just that you really need to make a commitment to walk them every day and pay some attention to them every day, and never treat them like some sort of burdensome furniture. Besides, walking them is good for you too! Guaranteed food for your soul, if you let it be.
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